Affirmative Action

Chronology & History

• Affirmative Action: Legislative History, Judicial Interpretations, Public Consensus chapter from America Becoming: Racial Trends and Their Consequences, Volume 1, National Academy Press (2001)
• Bakke and Beyond: A History and Timeline of Affirmative Action from Infoplease.com
• Review of Federal Affirmative Action Programs (Report) 19 July 1995. See Chapter 2 of Report, Affirmative Action: History & Rationale.
• Timeline of Affirmative Action from Infoplease.com
• Update on Affirmative Action in Higher Education: A Current Legal Overview from the American Association of University Professors, September 2001.

Texts

• Armed Forces Equal Opportunity Survey Executive Summary 22 November 1999(?); Also, Memorandum re: the Survey
• President Clinton's Proclamation on the 50th Anniversary of the Integration of the Armed Services 13 July 1998
• President Clinton on Affirmative Action 19 July 1995
• President John F. Kennedy: Executive Order 10925 6 March 1961; established the President's Committee on Equal Employment Opportunity. Makes the first reference to "affirmative action".
• President Lyndon B. Johnson: Executive Order 11246 24 September 1965; prohibits federal contractors from discriminating in employment because of race, creed, color, and national origin; requires government contractors to take affirmative action to insure that equal opportunity is provided in all aspects of their employment. Enforces affirmative action for the first time. Executive Order 11246 Fact Sheet from the U.S. Department of Labor explains the guidelines.
• President Lyndon B. Johnson: "To Fulfiill These Rights" Commencement Address at Howard University 4 June 1965; considered one of President Johnson's most eloquent speeches; frames the concept underlying affirmative action
• President Harry S. Truman: Executive Order 9981 26 July 1948; abolished segregation in the armed forces and ordered full integration of all the services.

Court Decisions

• Selected Court Decisions on Affirmative Action in Employment and Education

Selected Readings

• Books and Documents
• Articles
  

Web Sites

• Affirmative Action from About.com
  Links to articles, reports, resources and organizations.
• Affirmative Action from Civilrights.org
  Links to history, overview, status of affirmative action; also news stories and clips; press releases, and speeches
• Affirmative Action from JURIST: The Legal Education Network
  Links to news articles; click on refresh or reload for latest stories
• Affirmative Action from Yahoo! News
  Links to news stories and op-ed pieces, magazine stories, audio files, and related web sites.
• Affirmative Action from The Chronicle of Higher Education
  An "Issue in Depth" presentation, including background articles and documents, federal and state action and policies, texts of court decisions; password required; available free to subscribers of the print edition of the Chronicle.
• Affirmative Action archived Special Report from the Washington Post
  Though not presently updated, this Special Report includes an introductory essay, key stories from The Post, as well as select editorials and columns. The resources and links section lists related Web sites.
• Affirmative Action and Diversity Project: A Web Page for Research
  A comprehensive academic resource that seeks to present diverse opinions regarding affirmative action topics. Contains policy documents, current legislative updates, articles and analyses, and an annotated bibliography as well as a substantial amount of information on California politics and Proposition 209.
• American Civil Rights Institute
  American Civil Rights Institute. Created in January of 1997 by Ward Connerly to "educate the public about racial and gender preferences". Connerly served as chairman of the California Civil Rights Initiative (Proposition 209) campaign. The site includes text of the Proposition, a chronology of the lawsuit and related material.
• California Votes NO! on 209
  This website was dedicated to defeating the Proposition 209 ballot initiative. The site is now focusing on mobilizing efforts to reverse the initiative. Includes link to other organizations opposed to Proposition 209.
• Californians Against Discrimination and Preferences
  Created in August, 1994, this political committee backed the California Civil Rights Initiative (Proposition 209) which passed in November of 1996. The site continues to provide updates as to the status of implementation of Proposition 209. Daily news updates on affirmative action, race and related topics presents all views on these issues.
• The Center for Individual Rights
  A "non-profit public interest law firm dedicated to the defense of individual rights, with particular emphasis on civil rights, freedom of speech, the free exercise of religion, and sexual harassment law." CIR litigated the landmark case, Hopwood v. Texas, the case that struck down affirmative action in higher education in Texas, Lousiana and Mississippi. CIR is representing the plaintiffs in the two University of Michigan affirmative action lawsuits. The CIR web site includes a news and information section; a list of it's cases, both pending and completed; links to other conservative organizations and publications; and articles about CIR.
• Desegregation of the Armed Forces
  A collection of Project Whistlestop, the digital archive of the Truman Presidential Library. The desegregation collection contains hundreds of pages of digitalized documents - press releases, letters, and diary entries - covering 1938 to 1957. A timeline offers a comprehensive summary summary of events, from 1945-1953, relating to the Truman Administration and the Desegregation of the Armed Forces. The site is keyword-searchable, with a browse capability by date and topical folders.
• University of Michigan, News and Information Services
  From the media relations office at the University of Michigan, this site provides comprehensive materials about the two lawsuits - - Gratz v. Bollinger et. al and Grutter v. Bollinger, et. al - - challenging the University's admissions policies. The site includes an FAQ section, legal documents, articles in the University Record, news releases, comments by university leaders and statements of support.
• Washington State I-200
  This sub-page of the Affirmative Action and Diversity Project is devoted to Washington State Initiative 200, modeled roughly after California's Proposition 209. Passed in the November 3rd, 1998 mid-term elections, this measure eliminates "preferences" in state and municipal hiring and recruitment to the state university system. This page offers the full text of the Initiative, news stories, and opinions pro and con.